Truth is King.

Current Affairs

March 08, 2013

Abortion providers are under-regulated and pose a threat to women's health and safety...not to mention the fact that they are in the business of killing babies for money. Below is an excellent look at abortion providers around the country and a great reminder why common sense regulations like Senate Bill 371 (requiring abortion clinics to give a possibly life saving ultrasound, if the patient has an ectopic pregnancy, before selling abortion pills) and Senate Bill 489 (making sure abortion providers offer women an ultrasound and full information on fetal development before performing an abortion) right here in Indiana are so important.

March 07, 2013

As I've debated so-called same-sex "marriage" over the years I have come across well meaning moderate friends who don't necessarily want to completely redefine marriage but are open to "civil unions".

I've mentioned on those occasions that, among a long list of problems with granting special privileges for people based on their sexual preferences, Leftist advocates will use this appeasement by marriage moderates against them.

In that brief the Obama administration argues that because California recognizes domestic partnerships and civil unions but refuses to give marriage licenses to same-sex couples, the State of California is discriminating against same-sex couples and should be forced to recognize so-called same-sex "marriage" (SCOTUS blog backs me up). In federal district court openly homosexual Judge Vaughn Walker gave basically the same argument when he ruled against marriage.

California gave "GLBT" activists almost everything they wanted. All the rights of marriage short of the name? You got it. Public recognition? You got it. But when California balked at changing the definition of what marriage is, their herculean works of appeasement were used as weapons against them, both in federal court under openly homosexual Judge Vaughn Walker and again by the Obama Administration.

Support for creating special rights based on sexual preferences of any kind is a gift in the Left's war on marriage. You cannot be pro-"civil unions" and pro-marriage. If marriage is to be protected, creating these sorts of legal structures meant for compromise with "GLBT" activists must be avoided. As the Obama Administration and Judge Walker have shown us: Marriage moderates will be punished.

INDIANAPOLIS - Today, the Indiana Senate passed two bills supported by Indiana Right to Life, SB 489 and SB 371. SB 489 allows a woman seeking an abortion to opt out of hearing the fetal heart tone and seeing an ultrasound of her preborn baby prior to termination and it provides her with medical information about the abortion procedure. SB 371 corrects a major oversight in Indiana law by requiring health and safety standards at chemical abortion facilities. Both bills now go to the Indiana House for consideration.

Currently, chemical abortions are being performed at Planned Parenthood's Lafayette facility without any state inspection or licensing requirements. This means that no one at the Indiana State Department of Health knows if a doctor is present at the Lafayette Planned Parenthood facility, how the gestational age and position of the baby in the uterus is being determined, if abortions on girls under 14 are being reported to child protective services or if the structure of the building allows ambulance crews to access a patient in the unfortunate case of an emergency.

Abortion-inducing drugs carry serious risks as detailed by the manufacturer and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines. As of April 2011 according to the FDA, 14 U.S. women died after a chemical abortion and more than two thousand adverse chemical abortion complications have been reported.

SB 371's requirement that abortion providers perform an ultrasound before doing a chemical abortion is a safeguard against the next chemical abortion death occurring in Indiana. An ultrasound verifies the unborn baby is less than 9 weeks old and that it is not an ectopic, or "tubal," pregnancy. Taking an abortion-inducing drug while experiencing an ectopic pregnancy will rapidly lead to a life-threatening situation.

"We thank our senators for addressing a major issue for women's health and safety," said Becky Rogness, Communications Director for Indiana Right to Life. "SB 371 will require Planned Parenthood in Lafayette to become a licensed abortion facility like other Indiana abortion facilities. Once SB 371 is signed into law, abortion-seeking women will not have to wonder if basic standards in care are being met. Lawmakers are not 'playing doctor' as some have claimed but are rather correcting a flaw in current law. This legislation also prevents new chemical abortion facilities from opening for business without being regulated and licensed.

"SB 371 requires a common sense ultrasound to be performed before the abortion. According to Planned Parenthood's website, ultrasounds are already performed by them as part of their chemical abortion protocol so it's surprising they oppose this requirement in SB 371. Furthermore, SB 371 does not mandate what type of ultrasound is performed. The doctor performing the abortion will decide what type of ultrasound is most effective."

Indiana Right to Life recently produced a video with Indiana OBGYN, Dr. Geoffrey Cly, explaining that either a vaginal or abdominal ultrasound can determine the location of the preborn baby in an early pregnancy.

SB 371 passed the Indiana Senate by a vote of 33 to 16. SB 489 passed by a vote of 40 to 10.

Click here for the FDA's Adverse Events Summary through April 30, 2011.

December 19, 2012

When I heard the report that a WISH/Ball State poll found that 54% of Hoosiers oppose the Marriage Amendment and 53% support decriminalizing marijuana I immediately knew something wasn't right. This is Indiana. Mitt Romney won by double digits even though Hoosiers weren't that excited about him.

When you look at the fine print of the poll (page 22), you find the truth. They over-polled liberals big time. 45% of those they polled were Democrats. Only 41% were Republican. Even worse, 60% were moderates or liberals. Only 32% were Conservatives. That is not an accurate representation of Indiana.

It's a shame that WISH TV 8 and Ball State are paying for this sort of propaganda. A donation to Indiana Inequality wouldn't have even been as valuable to the Left as free propaganda from the mouthpieces of the "mainstream" media and a state university. If WISH TV and Ball State really want to be seen as honest brokers in the community they should immediately apologize and admit that this poll is a fraud.

I wonder if tax dollars were involved in this mess...to be continued...

August 17, 2012

Scary stuff. As the state affiliate of the Family Research Council, please say an extra prayer for those of us who believe in God's design for marriage and family. Someone who disagrees with our public policy positions literally took up arms against one of our own in an attempt silence those who stand up for traditional family values.

Floyd Corkins shot Leo Johnson, the building operations manager of FRC, Wednesday after stating his opposition to FRC's policy positions and attempting to enter the FRC office. The police and FRC President Tony Perkins are calling Leo a hero as the gunman had 50 rounds of ammunition in his backpack and could have killed many members of FRC if not for Leo the Hero wrestling the gun away from the shooter after Leo sustained a gunshot wound.

In addition to the rounds of ammunition, Corkins had 15 chick-fil-a sandwiches in his backpack. As FRC President Tony Perkins mentions in the video below, as the Leftist media and traditional marriage opponents freaked out over Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy's correct assertion that God's design for marriage is the best, media have mentioned that Chick-fil-A has donated to FRC (only $1,000 years ago, according to Tony in the video) and that FRC is a certified "hate-group" according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

While it is a good start that a coalition of 25 gay rights groups released a through GLAAD condemning the shooting, I agree wholeheartedly with Tony that these groups should take the next step and pressure their friends at the Southern Poverty Law Center to remove the "hate-group" label from FRC and others in the pro-family community who hate no one and only wish to make the country a better place for families and the next generation.

The sad irony is that true hate was on display Wednesday by the gunman/"GLBT" group volunteer. FRC has never displayed hate and has only love for their fellow man, including those who disagree with them. The Leftists at the Southern Poverty Law Center and other "GLBT" groups who have called FRC and others "hate groups" dangerously label disagreement over policy issues as "hatred" towards those who claim a homosexual identity. It is possible to disagree with someone and not hate them. FRC stands for traditional marriage. That doesn't mean they hate homosexuals. The fact that the Southern Poverty Law Center and others confuse the two is wrong and should be remedied immediately.

The Indianapolis City-County Council is set to approve "Domestic Partnership" Ordinance 213 this Monday at 7pm. Yesterday on the Greg Garrison radio show, prompted by an IFI question, Mayor Ballard revealed that he is still undecided on whether he will approve this ordinance or Veto it. The final decision rests with him.

We do not alert you to issues like these and ask you to take action if we do not believe you can make a difference on the outcome. Here are 2 things that you can do that could decide whether this ordinance is passed into law or defeated:

1. RIGHT NOW - Call Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard's office (317-327-3601). There will be a nice lady who will answer your call and will take a message for you to share with the Mayor. Respectfully urge the Mayor to VETO Domestic Partnership Ordinance 213. They only take calls from 9am - 5pm, so call now.

2. Please join us at the hearing on Monday at 7pm so the City-County Council members understand that there are a significant number of Hoosiers who respectfully disagree with them on this issue (it looks as if the Democrat led Council will pass this by a vote of 20-9). Here is the address:

Indianapolis Marion County Building 200 East Washington StIndianapolis, IN 46204

*You can respond to this email if you would like to attend the hearing with IFI or have any questions.

What would this ordinance do?

Proposed Domestic Partnership Ordinance 213 would create a legal entity somewhat similar to a marriage license called a "Declaration of Domestic Partnership". Currently the City of Indianapolis uses taxpayer dollars to include the spouse and children of city employees into the benefits package. This ordinance would create a competing legal entity to marriage, "Declaration of Domestic Partnership," for those heterosexual couples who choose not to marry and homosexual couples who cannot legally marry, so that their significant others would also get these taxpayer benefits.

Why would this be a problem?

"Domestic Partnerships" will not appease homosexual activists...it will only give them greater leverage in their effort to overturn marriage laws and silence those who disagree with them. Militant Leftist homosexual activists around the country have attempted (with some success) to convince elected officials that granting some of the legal benefits of marriage to homosexual couples is the equitable thing to do (whether through "domestic partnerships", "civil unions" or other legal creations).

California is a great example why this is a mistake. In California, elected officials attempted to appease these homosexual activists by passing a statewide "domestic partnership" law. Were these activists satisfied with these legislative victories? No. In their efforts to overturn the definition of marriage as one man/one woman in California, same-sex marriage supporters claimed that "domestic partnerships" were "discriminatory", "stigmatized gays and lesbians" and turned "gays and lesbians" into "second, third or even fourth class citizens" (Perry v. Schwarzenegger). They took the olive branch of "domestic partnerships" and beat marriage supporters over the head with it.

The City of Indianapolis doesn't have the money. There are competing reports that the City of Indianapolis will finish 2012 anywhere from $30 - $70 million over budget. Cuts to public safety are not off the table. The fiscal analysis of this ordinance estimates that the domestic partnership ordinance would cost at least $200,000 a year. However, we believe it will cost significantly more. Possibly as much as $1 million per year or more annually. This is not a time for pork barrel spending. This is a time for fiscal responsibility.

Domestic Partnership Ordinance 213 is not really about benefits...it's about government promoting homosexuality through the law. The fact of the matter is that there are only a handful of homosexual City of Indianapolis employees that would even qualify for these additional benefits and even the "GLBT" community admits that same-sex couples have higher per-capita income than their heterosexual counterparts. This ordinance is simply not needed. So why are the Democrats in the Indianapolis City-County Council (with Councilor Angela Mansfield leading the charge) pushing this so hard? Because the homosexual advocacy groups that helped them get elected want this badly. Not because of the taxpayer dollars they will receive, but because of the message it sends. Their goal is not "equality," it is convincing (or forcing if need be) the American public that there is nothing wrong with homosexuality. Through this ordinance it will be the public policy of the City of Indianapolis that there is no difference between married husband and wife relationships, cohabiting man/woman relationships outside of marriage or two men who have a sexual relationship together. The City of Indianapolis is prepared to shift from a child centric, marriage model for rewarding workers with benefits to an individual sexual preference model where two men shacking up is the moral equivaliant to a lifelong commitment between husband and wife. This public pronouncement will make it more likely that the Chick-fil-A's of the world will continue to be attacked, not less. After all, it is precisely Dan Cathy's understanding that not all sexual preferences are equal, and in fact, that some sexual preferences are flat out wrong, that led to the Mayors of Chicago and Boston promising to illegally bar Chick-fil-A from opening stores in those cities. Don't be fooled. That can happen here.

We have have created a special facebook page to pass along information about this ordinance:

August 01, 2012

With most Christian schools -- online and offline -- charging over $5,000 annual tuition, a school charging only $500 stands out like a rose among thorns. You heard that right! King's Way Classical Academy has slashed its tuition to only $500 a year. That's ten cents on the dollar. It's even less if you recruit another student--you can cut that $500 to just $400!

"We're trying to make life easier for the homeschooler," said headmaster Dennis Oliver Woods, "plus eliminate the financial barrier for Christian families to get their kids out of the government school system." Worldview testing proves that a majority of Christian kids emerge from public school with a secular worldview. That tragic statistic is destroying our culture. King's Way is on a mission to reverse that trend.

This proposal would create a legal entity called a "domestic partnership" which is intended to mirror marriage. The goal is a repeat of what we have seen in other states where these "domestic partnerships" are created and then used in an attempt to overturn state marriage laws.

This will add hundreds of thousands of dollars in new spending to a city that is in fiscal crisis, according to the fiscal the city has worked up (we believe it will cost more in the $500,000 dollar range with fraud and abuse causing it to possibly rise higher in the future):

The Rules Committe is expected to vote the domestic partnership ordinance (213) through on July 10th and the full Indianapolis City-County Council is expected to approve it July 16. Our only realistic hope in defeating this ordinance is sharing our opposition to the Mayor's office.

June 07, 2012

Please join IFI staff at the Stand Up for Religious Liberty Rally at the Statehouse at noon THIS Friday, June 8. Thanks to Indianapolis Right to Life for getting these rallies together. Hundreds showed up last time. Let's get even more this time around. Religious liberty is directly under attack. We must stand up and defend this foundational freedom.

May 25, 2012

On the heels of President Obama voicing his support for same-sex marriage and a lawsuit here in Indiana seeking to overturn our marriage laws, I was asked to debate marriage and family policies with an IU Sociology Professor and a representative of the Center for Inquiry at the Bloomington NPR affiliate on the IU campus. Needless to say, I was the only traditional marriage supporter in the room and the callers were generally against me.

However, I believe conservatives must take our message into hostile territory. We have the truth on our side. Increasingly Americans are separating themselves based on worldview. Where we live, work, what we watch and listen to. God's design for marriage and family is important. If Christians who hold to Biblical truth are not willing to take the message of truth and hope into these areas, who will?